‘Blue and violet-saturated light worsens people’s ability to see the details.’ – Street Lights With LEDs Are Turning The Light Purple And Causing Safety Issues

Street Lights are important for ensuring cars can see what is ahead and pedestrians can get around safely at night.

The modern LED street lights are energy efficient and really light up an area well, but some of them in Los Angeles are turning purple, which is making it impossible to see properly.

This TikToker looked into why it is happening and made a video explaining. He begins by saying, “What is up. This is your LA in a minute, and if you’ve been out after dark recently, you’ve noticed these blue and purple-tinted street lights. No, this is not a filter; the street lights are actually purplish and bluish in some, but not all, areas in Los Angeles.”

That is really weird, and makes it hard to see.

He goes on, “Is that intentional? Is it safe? What’s going on with these purple street lights? Let’s get into it.”

I like that he is going to explain what is happening.

Next, he says, “Even though it is a pretty nice color, it can actually be dangerous. The lack of blue-sensitive cones at the center of our retina make it difficult to see blue and violet-saturated light, and worsens people’s ability to see the details. This can make it difficult to distinguish between colors.”

Yeah, I would hate to walk down a street like that.

Next, he explains what is happening. “Not only are LEDs brighter and make things easier to see, but they are one of the most energy-efficient lighting technologies that exist. But the way that LEDs are made is one of the reasons that these street lights end up turning purple.”

This should be interesting.

He goes on, “While we see the white light of the LED street light, it’s actually blue LEDs coated with a type of fluorescent substance called phosphor. So, when the blue LED light goes through this layer, the phosphor absorbs some of the blue wavelengths and spits out different ones that appear to the eye to be white light.”

Wow, I had no idea.

Later in the video, he explains what is happening to the lights. “So, what appears to be happening is that some of the phosphor is degrading over time. As it flakes off and there is less phosphor to absorb light, more of the LED light, the blue, is visible.”

Apparently, they aren’t sure why this is happening, but the city is trying to replace the bulbs as soon as they can.

This seems like a serious safety issue.

Watch the video for yourself to get a good look and hear the full explanation.

@evanlovett

If you’ve been out after dark in Los Angeles, recently, you’ve noticed the purple- and blue- tinted street lights. Why are these here, are they safe, and will they be replaced? Let’s get into it! #Streelights #LosAngeles #LAInAMinute #DriverSafety #Inverted #greenscreen

♬ original sound – L.A. in a Minute

Plenty of commenters found this interesting, and some had their own theories.

I hope this person is joking.

The old sodium lights were pretty cool.

Apparently this is happening in many places.

The blue light looks cool, but I bet it is dangerous.

If you liked that story, check out this one about a 72-year-old woman was told by her life insurance company that her policy was worthless because she’d paid for 40 years. 🙁